The Thoughts and Writing of Robert Wherry

2017 Summer July 16 Sunday

Enjoyable walk this morning. I really wasn’t sure if I would be able to walk (at least with any pleasantness) after assisting someone move yesterday morning, but I was fine, no aches or pains. Next time, I am going to talk a long hot bath after doing something like that! I probably lost some weight in the heat, although I drank a lot of water also.

Pace was actually 6 seconds faster than my goal, which surprised me. I wasn’t even trying to walk fast.

Going to have to work fast this morning. I charge my laptop up every night when I go to bed and somehow it became unplugged (or I set it down and then forgot to plug in the charger), so if I want to sit outside with my laptop working on this I will need to write fast!

Listening to the “Great Course” book, the “Industrial Revolution”.

While it is interesting in itself, some of the word origins are fascinating.

For example a “toy” wasn’t a child’s plaything, but was a steel knife or any kind of like item made in Birmingham, England. They didn’t go into how the word somehow the word “toy” as a child’s (or adult’s for that matter) plaything became a common term. I’ll research it and report!

I have to think that somehow the steel devices were considered as non-essential, although I think a “toy” for children also is a learning device to enhance their creatively etc.

On the other hand, I didn’t really have any toys (well not many anyway, I did have some), so rocks became cars, twigs airplanes, and I built dirt roads and buildings in the dirt and a lot of my buildings etc. were a figment of my imagination. Nothing I would recommend today, to be honest, but you do what you can with what you have.

I really think toys are a learning experience for children and helps them develop.

I am reading more and more about how computer “games” are keeping people from working etc, and may even be a reason for the mysterious disappearance of certain aged males (and probably females) from the workforce. They are playing video games instead of working.

From a financial standpoint, I’m not sure if that makes a lot of sense. Perhaps they get funds from the “gig economy” and work to play video games.

Or more likely, it’s not really a problem as such, anymore than time wasters have always been a problem. Video games, computers etc. may take up a lot of time, but there have always been “time wasters” around to take up your time. This era it is video games, it probably used to be computers, tv, books, whatever. (Also, video games can be educational tools, and very valuable learning experiences.)

Balance, as always, is important.

Another term I was surprised to learn was that a “Mystery” was not a detective novel or a puzzle, rather a “Mystery” was a body of knowledge held by a person who taught it to others. The information they had was was the “Mystery”.

It kind makes sense how the word “mystery” developed into what means today, a lot more than how the word “toy” developed.

He explained the Craft system also, something I really didn’t know or at least consciously know.

An “Apprentice” of course was someone who is learning a body of knowledge, normally a trade.

A “Journeyman” was somewhat good enough to be hired by, or probably contracted by, a Master Craftsman and (back then) paid a daily wage.

A “Master Craftsman” was the person who had the capital and knowledge to actually handle all of the production of an item or had a business.

A “Journeyman” goal was to build up enough capital to become a “Master Craftsman”, something which became impossible as far as ship building etc.